Angel 6

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Update 12/01/11:

Angel recently moved to a different foster home to be evaluated for her readiness for adoption. This wonderful girl has passed with flying colors!!!!! 

Angel is a high energy girl and will need a furever home with a large fenced yard so she can get plenty of exercise. Though not a requirement of her adoption, this sweetie would really benefit from an obedience class too. It would be an excellent bonding tool for her and her new family. Angel has been well behaved with no accidents in her new foster home. She is going to make some active family extremely happy!!!

Update 11/14/11:

Progress continues slowly but surely for Angel. One thing that remains constant is that she is a sweet and affectionate gal who always enjoys cuddling and giving kisses. She is right there to demand her fair share when attention is being showered on her foster siblings. She gets along well with the other dogs and loves to groom the resident Springer or rough house with everybody. Despite this love of spirited play, there is not a mean bone in this girl’s body. 

Angel responds well to verbal, physical, and edible reinforcement as well as consistency. She is complying more frequently to “drop it” and “put it down” – way to go, Angel! She still loves to take off with her foster mom’s shoes, socks, and cleaning rags, so these commands are frequently used. If treats are involved, Angel is quick to sit or lay down but may take repeated prompts without the promise of something yummy. She is fairly consistent with “go around,” especially if she is tangled in something outside. 

Counter surfing continues to be a favorite pastime for Angel. Recently her foster mom investigated her frantic barking in the kitchen, only to find two pieces of pizza on the back of the counter were taunting her. Her foster mom continues to be impressed by how gently Angel accepts treats, especially after seeing her swoop in for items on the counter or from hands. Angel is an adept pickpocket too and will gently sneak tissues out of her foster mom’s pocket before she realizes what Angel’s doing, but ohhhhhh, what an improvement from those first few weeks!

Angel is doing better on walks around the pond and has significantly reduced attempts to chase the ducks. She is even starting to take care of personal matters on walks instead of waiting until she gets back home. Being a flight risk, Angel continues to go out in the yard on a 20 foot line as she’s very adept at finding spots to slip under the fence. She gets so excited when she sees bunnies and squirrels; she barks and barks so excitedly that you might think that Timmy had fallen in the well! 

Housetraining continues with Angel going out about every 1-1/2 hours. Many times she lets her foster mom know of her need and is persistent if there’s not a response on the double. Given her frequent and often-urgent needs, Angel had a sonogram of her bladder which showed everything to be normal. Two urinalyses also ruled out a urinary tract infection. Further evaluation of a potential bladder issue will continue. 

With increased exercise, Angel’s weight is down to 47 pounds – yeah! Angel is a very strong young lady and can easily pull a person off balance, so each pound lost is less resistance on a leash. Her increased exercise is resulting in a firmer and sleeker figure too, and, her coat now shines beautifully from good quality food. No doubt about it, this girl is turning into a real beauty! More to come as this gem begins to gleam!

Update 10/12/11:

Angel is doing great at being crated which is helping her family with housetraining efforts. She is crated eight hours during the day with a break for lunch and also during the night. Her foster mom is also working with her vet to rule out the possibility of a UTI or another underlying issue that might be at play with accidents this gal has been having. Keeping a record of bathroom trips for further discussion with the vet is happening. For her part, Angel continues to occasionally let her foster mom know she needs to go out by going to the door or giving a couple “woofs” but, at this time, Angel is generally taken out on a schedule………..which helps the most.

In the yard Angel continues to benefit from being on a twenty foot lead. It seems she doesn’t recognize her name when she is on the loose and excited, so having extra length on her line gives her foster mom an edge until “come” becomes a reliable command.

With the typical enthusiasm of youthful pups, Angel steals items off the kitchen counter whenever she can and was recently caught tearing up a couple of dollar bills. She is attracted to her foster mom’s socks, shoes and cleaning rags which she shakes about. Given this, Angel is learning the “drop it” or “let go” commands. There is no resource guarding and Angel will allow foster mom to remove items from her mouth. This gal also enjoys less mischievous activities such as spirited tug-of-war; she will retrieve a ball and likes chewing on bones, chasing moths, and barking at squirrels, birds, and bunnies. 

Angel loves to be brushed and is cooperative when getting a bath. She enjoys any individual attention that she can get, is a little love bug, and certainly a work in progress. More on this spirited pup to come………….

Update 09/14/11:

Angel continues to make progress. Some things are coming faster than others, but one thing has remained constant………..Angel is a loving, pleasant, and tolerant gal. 

Her foster mom is discovering Angel’s positive attributes through the various ups and downs of the last three weeks. To cut down on accidents and to limit temptations. Angel is now crated while her foster mom works. Angel often goes in the crate with a verbal prompt and treats to entice her. On occasion she will independently go in the crate for a nap. Once in the crate, she will bark for a few minutes before settling in. She is crated eight hours a day with a break for lunch. Angel is still having accidents in the house but, with her own cheerleading squad of one, she is getting better about going outside. On several occasions she has even signaled a need to go out with a “woof” and going to the door or to her foster mom……a terrific sign of progress!!

Other “puppy” ways are giving way to improving manners. Angel is getting better about not being underfoot and is not grabbing feet/shoes as much when going down steps or out the door. She is also becoming a better traveler with experience. To assure Angel remains onboard for the entire trip, her foster mom has learned to keep the automatic window buttons locked; otherwise, Angel will put down the window to grab some fresh air! At the end of a ride, Angel now patiently waits for her foster mom to open the back door and take her leash which Angel always wears in the car.

A Gentle Leader has enabled Angel to become a better walker but she will become overly excited if she sees any squirrels along the way. She will bark at other dogs if she feels threatened. She still grabs the leash in her mouth and doesn’t want to let go at times; it’s amazing what a pup can find playful! 

In the yard Angel has a very good prey drive and is constantly on the search for chipmunks. The population of chippies has been reduced by at least one since her arrival! Angel has discovered the wooded wilderness beyond her fenced yard has critters too and has determined to find a way to it. She found weak areas of chain link and tries to go under the aluminum fencing too. Her foster mom is now taking her out on a twenty foot lead until the perimeter can be secured. One of her “escapes” was almost an hour long and required brushing out a zillion sticky weeds and a bath once she was caught. Angel was quite patient and tolerant while her foster mom did this, right down to untangling her ears. She is great about being bathed and just needs to be watched so she doesn’t jump out of the tub too soon! 

Most of the time now, little Miss Angel eats her supper out of a bowl without dumping it. She gently accepts her treats and usually sits for them without verbal prompting. She will bark and jump on the vacuum at times but is becoming more tolerant of it. Countersurfing continues to be an issue and the toilet seat lid needs to be kept down at all times! Angel is doing better about sleeping on a dog pillow bedside at night but can’t always resist the temptation to join her foster mom. She can jump in so gently that she’s not found out until her foster mom wakes up. The upside? Angel is getting better about jumping down when prompted…….:)). 

Angel continues to get along with other dogs at home and likes to play. She can be quite the little roughhouser but also enjoys helping out her buddies with a good face licking every now and then. 

You get the picture? This little “angel” is very typical for her age and breed. She’s playful, jovial, fearless, always thinking (except when asleep!), curious, trainable, loving, happiest when outdoors or right next to her people, still in need of shaping and with unlimited potential. She’ll hit the ground running when she meets her adopting family, and, will be a treasure to work with as she grows into adulthood!!

Original:

Angel came into foster care from New York after her owner/breeder had a stroke and later passed away. Before being relinquished to MAESSR, she spent several months in a kennel. Angel is a smart, sweet, and affectionate nineteen-month old who loves getting attention and being with people. She has been an angel to her foster mother as she will play with and tire out a three-month-old foster puppy in the home. Angel gets along well with the resident dogs too, a male Springer and a female bearded collie mix. 

As with many youngsters, Angel is a diamond in the rough who needs some polishing to improve house and leash manners. She is very much like a giant puppy! She has a tendency to be underfoot and will grab at shoes/feet/hands while trying to go downstairs or out the door. She loves to give kisses but also tries to grab earrings if a face is close by…….:)). Once on a leash, she often becomes more excited. She grabs the leash and won’t let go, spinning around and around. When wearing a Gentle Leader, she does fairly well and, though she still cuts a wide swath while walking, she will start to settle down as she goes along. She doesn’t bark a lot unless the vacuum or lawn mower is in use. She likes to wrestle or play tug of war with the puppy, chew on bones, and chase a ball. She will also chew on clothing and shoes but allows those items to be removed from her mouth………good girl!!! 

Perhaps in part due to her extended time in a kennel, Angel is not completely housebroken. Training is leading to improvement with the occasional accident, mostly while her foster mom is at work. Her foster mom comes home at lunch which helps at this time. Angel does not always take the time to empty her bladder when she does go out, again not unusual at this stage of training. With continuing and consistent guidance from her foster mom, Angel will master this important skill. She simply needs a little more time to work on it

Angel has access to a crate but spends her days out of it; for general use, she doesn’t care for it. However, she chose to sit in it on her own during a severe thunderstorm. Except for accidents, she has been trustworthy when left with the other dogs in a puppy-proofed house, so her foster family has not pressed crate-training. 

As Angel makes her transition from kennel life to home life, there are continuing signs of progress. She tries to squeeze out the door when her foster mom leaves home but she is not barking as much at the time. She doesn’t get into the covered wastepaper cans but does countersurf and will grab food from her foster mom when she’s off guard. Angel’s personal eating habits are improving; she isn’t dumping her food dish to eat supper off the floor as often as when she arrived. She is starting to sit for her treats but requires verbal and physical prompts at times. With patient guidance, Angel does gently accept them. 

With puppy abandon, Angel will jump up on people and on furniture. A starting point to shape better behavior has centered around Angel’s learning that she doesn’t get to sleep in her foster mom’s bed…….though she still tries when she thinks her foster mom is asleep! Angel has not been bathed yet, but she does love to be brushed. She also likes going for car rides but would prefer to sit up front. For safety reasons, this isn’t an option and she needs to be restricted to the back seat or she will choose “shot gun.” 

Generally her foster mom has found Angel to be calm with moderate energy. Angel loves being outside in the fenced yard at her foster home and doggedly pursues the chipmunks which have tunneled in the yard. She has tested the perimeter and has squeezed out the gate a couple times but was easily caught. 

With just a week in foster care, Angel’s family can see this “diamond in the rough” has a lot of potential. She’s a great gal who needs a family who will work with her, set limits for her, and reward her for every little thing she does right. Though not a requirement of her adoption, this is a dog that would benefit greatly from a basic obedience class with her adopting family. It would hasten bonding and lay the foundation for Angel’s continuing development of great manners. She’s a good girl. What she needs most is a family who will work with her to leave puppyhood behind and become the true “angel” she is!!!